Improvement in car-couplings



r Tf. LANS'TON. i Improvement in Car-Couplings.

No. '115,156.41) A Y Y' iPat'enfed'1une1`,`rgvf.

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4.4 morMrMacmM/c m M x (anamnmamen) UNITED STATES `PATENT OFFICE;

IMPROVEMENT IN CAR-COUPLINGS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 115,964, dated J une13, 1871.

To alliwhom t may concern:

Be it known that I, TOLBERT LANsToN, of Washington,l in the county ofWashington and District of Columbia, have invented a new and yaluableImprovement in Oar-Couplings; and I do hereby declare that the fo1-lowing is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction andoperation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawing makinga part of this specification and to the letters and gures of referencemarked thereon.

Figure 1 of the drawing is a top view of my-invention. Fig. 2 is acentral vertical longitudinal section of the same.

My invention has relation to means for coupling cars; and it consists inthe construction and relationship of the bell-mouth and coupling-link,and in the pivoted V catch operated by means of weighted arms, and soarranged that it shall be automatically set by the link when the same iswithdrawn from the draw-head.

The letter A of the drawing designates the hollow draw-head, cast withthe bell-mouth B. O represents the coupling-pin.V D, the

- coupling-link. 'This link is of peculiar formation. One end of it isnarrow, and is designed to be inserted into the throat ofthe oppositedraw-head to engage with the catch or coupling-link. Theiother end ofthe link is expanded laterally suiciently to extend beyond theside-walls of the bell-mouth, and then, forming elbows c c', extends tothe rear in the form of two arms, c a, one on each side of thedraw-head, to which they are secured by means of the bolt b passingtransversely through the draw-head. The ends of the arms a c are slottedwhere they embrace the bolt, thus giving to the link a certain play,which is required to allow it to be set in the guiding-notches of thebell-mouth. The lateral edges of the bell-mouth-B are notched centrallyat G in order to aiiord guiding-rests for the laterally-expanded arms aa of the link, and in order that the link may not be injured bythe edgesof the'bell-mouths in coming together. These edges are recessed aboveand below the notches G for a distance equal to the vertical diameterot' the throat of the draw-head. E represents a triangular catch,pivoted, by means of journals e e, to the sidewalls of the draw-head,and provided with the weighted arms H H. These arms are attached to theends of the journals e e, where they project through the side walls ofthe draw-head, and their angular position with reference to the catch issuch that they will hold it automatically in either of its twopositions. In its vertical section, as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawing,the catch is triangular, one of the angles being somewhat obtuse, whilethe other two are acute. The journals on which the catch turns arenearest to the obtuse angle. When the catch is set, with the weightedarms down, there will be presented toward the mouth of the draw-head theinclined plane fof the catch, up which inclined plane the hooked end kof the approaching coupling-link-passes until it falls over the upperangle o and becomes securely engaged. In order to ei'ect a disengagementthe weighted arms H H are thrown back, thereby depressing the angle oand raising the angle z, when the link may be withdrawn with ease; butin passing forward out of the draw-head the hook k of the link operatesto turn the catch over, thus automatically set- 'ting the catch for thereception of the next coupling-link which may enter. While each`draw-head is provided with a link, D, and

catch E, both are not designed to operate at the same time; but the linkof one draw-head and the catch of the opposite draw-head arev operatedtogether. When not in use the coupling-link hangs suspended by the armsa a under the draw-head. The coupling-link is so arranged that it can becoupled with the ordinary draw-head by means of the usual coupling-pin;or the link may be thrown down and the ordinary link used between thedraw-heads, the pin C being brought into operation. e

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Pat ent, isl l. The draw head A, having the lateral walls ofits bell-mouth notched at G G, and recessed above and below the notches,in combination with the coupling-link D having the slotted arms a aextending laterally beyond In testimony that I ela-iin the above I havethe walls of the bell-mouth. hereunto subscribed my naine in thepresence 2. In combination, the notched draw-head of two witnesses.

A, the automatic triangular catch E, and the TOLBERT LANSTON.

coupling-link D, having the hook K, the lat- Witnesses:

ernlly-expanded elbows c c', and the slotted l). D. KANE,

arms a a', substantially as specified. J No. M. HYNE.

